Tatte Bakery & Cafe | Rockville — Restaurant in North Bethesda

Tatte Bakery & Café opened its Rockville location on January 29, 2025, at Towne Plaza, marking its third spot in Montgomery County. Already beloved in the D.C. area for its charming atmosphere, signature pastries, and quality food, Tatte’s popularity easily carried over to this new location.

The Rockville café is absolutely adorable, featuring modern, airy interiors and a welcoming outdoor patio (first come, first served). There’s plenty of free parking right out front, which makes it super convenient. Note that they don’t serve alcoholic drinks here — it’s all about the coffee, matcha, pastries, and beautifully made food.

We visited around 11:30 AM on a Sunday morning and found the place buzzing. There was a line both for dine-in and takeout orders, and food took about 45 minutes after ordering. Despite the wait, the atmosphere stayed relaxed, and the staff kept everything moving.

The menu offers a great range of options. Their matcha latte had a nice earthy flavor but tasted a bit powdery. The tiramisu was light, creamy, and not overly sweet — a perfect finish if you’re looking for a dessert to pair with your drink.

Two standout savory dishes were: • Smoked Salmon, Avocado & Egg Sandwich: Smoked salmon paired with creamy avocado, scrambled eggs, red onion, capers, and alfalfa sprouts, all layered on a housemade challah roll with a fresh green herbed dressing. A hearty yet refreshing sandwich. • Croissant Breakfast Sandwich: A buttery, flaky croissant filled with egg, Vermont cheddar, sliced tomato, avocado, and baby arugula. Light, satisfying, and very well balanced.

There were some hiccups with my order — for some reason, another customer’s order got mixed into mine. The staff was actively trying to track down the other individual whose food had been attached to my ticket, and they almost gave me their sandwich by mistake. It was a little chaotic but the staff stayed polite and worked to get everything sorted out.

One other thing to mention: while I love dogs and completely understand wanting to bring them out and about, Tatte is still a restaurant where people are eating. It would be much more respectful for guests with dogs to sit outside on the patio or opt for grab-and-go and keep dogs outside. It’s important to be mindful of other guests who are dining inside.

Overall, despite some minor bumps, Tatte Rockville is a great addition to the area and absolutely lives up to the hype. Just be prepared for a wait during peak hours — but with food, coffee, and vibes this good, it’s still very much...

I had so wanted to love my first experience at a Tatte location, so imagine my dismay when I discovered, on arrival (and then confirmed with staff), that there is not a single pastry (savory or sweet), among the towering mass of pastry options at the new Tatte in Rockville, that I, a lifelong vegan, could sample. It actually never occurred to me that an establishment so lovingly conceived in the tradition of the comfort and bounty of the Israeli-European cafe would not think to offer vegan options, given that Israel rightfully boasts the highest per capita rate of ethical vegans in the world and sports a healthy national awareness that lactose intolerance occurs with high frequency among people (like me) of Levantine descent. I acknowledge that there appears to be one dish on Tatteś meal menu that is either vegan or can be altered to be vegan, but one dish, only??? in the year 2025??? Crestfallen, in any case, I ordered a double espresso to go, hoping to soothe my soul from this disappointment, but alas, the espresso was undrinkable, having been unmistakably brewed from extremely green, and NOT dark-roast beans. The result was a sour potion, and not the wonderful bitter gulp that it should always be. Again, a shock, for me, since the best espresso and Turkish coffees in the world are served, in my experience, in the Middle East and North Africa. Perhaps, if there are other vegans who, like me, would still like to patronize Tatte some day, our voices will eventually be heard, upon which we may make our way...

Tatte is one of my favorites for a healthy veg-heavy meal when I'm in Bethesda or DC, and I was super excited when they opened in Rockville. But I've tried this location 4 times now (twice for delivery and twice in person) and only one time was it very good. Parking is a nightmare, it's almost impossible to find a seat, and it's so loud it's hard to hear the person sitting 18 inches in front of you. But that's not that different from other locations and I could deal with it if the food were good. Unfortunately, it's not. On my most recent visit, the salmon was overcooked, dry, and extremely fishy tasting and the asparagus was woody and fibrous. I'm guessing they are just so inundated with customers that the chef doesn't have time to focus on quality control. But after 3 strikes out of 4, I won't be going back there for a meal anytime soon.

Having said that, the drinks are consistently good. It may well be worth going for drinks and possibly pastries (I didn't try those but they look gorgeous). I'd recommend thinking twice before ordering a meal though. Hopefully in time, this location will figure the rough bits out and the food...